The goal of Brown’s two executive orders is to “drive the state’s efforts forward in reducing greenhouse gas emissions,” she told reporters after the event. “Buildings, both residential and commercial, consume about 30 percent of Oregon’s energy use.”

Under the governor’s first executive order, new homes built after September 2020 must be equipped for solar panel installation and commercial buildings must meet the same mandate by October 2022. By October 2022, all parking structures for new homes and commercial buildings must be wired for at least one electric vehicle charger.

And by October 2023, Brown has directed the state’s Building Codes Division to require all new homes to be “zero-energy ready.”